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A patch of windblown sand and dust downhill from a cluster of dark rocks is the 'Rocknest' site, which has been selected as the likely location for first use of the scoop on the arm of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity. This view is a mosaic of images taken by the telephoto right-eye camera of the Mast Camera (Mastcam) during the 52nd Martian day, or sol, of the mission on September 28.

In an image taken Wednesday, NASA's Mars rover, Curiosity, cut a wheel scuff mark into the surface of Mars at the location known as Rocknest, giving scientists another view of the soil there prior to scooping up samples.

The Curiosity rover used its Mars Hand Lens Imager camera to take this close-up image of the top of a rock called "Bathurst Inlet," according to NASA. Eight images were combined for this "merged-focus view," the space agency said.

A rock outcrop called Link pops out from a Martian surface that is elsewhere blanketed by reddish-brown dust. The fractured Link outcrop has blocks of exposed, clean surfaces. Rounded gravel fragments, or clasts, up to a couple inches in size are in a matrix of white material. Many gravel-sized rocks have eroded out of the outcrop onto the surface, particularly in the left portion of the frame. The outcrop characteristics are consistent with a sedimentary conglomerate, or a rock that was formed by the deposition of water, and is composed of many smaller rounded rocks cemented together. Water transport is the only process capable of producing the rounded shape of clasts of this size.

The robotic arm of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity with the first rock touched by an instrument on the arm. Curiosity placed the Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer instrument onto the rock to assess what chemical elements were present. The rock is named "Jake Matijevic" in commemoration of influential Mars-rover engineer Jacob Matijevic.

A view of the United States flag medallion on NASA's Mars rover Curiosity that was taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager. The flag is one of four "mobility logos" placed on the rover's mobility rocker arms.

A combination of nine photos shows the lower front and underbelly areas of NASA's rover Curiosity as it maneuvers on the surface of Mars. The images were taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager on Sept. 9.

On Sol 32 (Sept. 7) the Curiosity rover used a camera on its arm to obtain this self-portrait. The image of the top of Curiosity's Remote Sensing Mast, showing the Mastcam and Chemcam cameras, was acquired by the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI). The angle of the frame reflects the position of the MAHLI camera on the arm when the image was taken. The image was acquired while MAHLI's clear dust cover was closed.

The reclosable dust cover on Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) was opened for the first time during the 33rd Martian day, or sol, of the rover's mission on Mars (Sept. 8), enabling MAHLI to take this image. The level of detail apparent in the image shows that haziness in earlier MAHLI images since landing was due to dust that had settled on the dust cover during the landing. The patch of ground shown is about 34 inches across. The size of the largest pebble, near the bottom of the image, is about 3 inches.

This view of the calibration target for the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) aboard NASA's Mars rover Curiosity combines two images taken by that camera on Mars on Sept. 9. The calibration target is on the rover body near the base of the arm. MAHLI has adjustable focus. The camera took two images with the same pointing: one with the calibration target in focus and one with the wheel and Martian ground in focus. The view here combines in-focus portions from these shots. The calibration target for the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) instrument includes color references, a metric bar graphic, a 1909 VDB Lincoln penny, and a stair-step pattern for depth calibration. The penny is a nod to geologists' tradition of placing a coin or other object of known scale as a size reference in close-up photographs of rocks, and it gives the public a familiar object for perceiving size easily when it will be viewed by MAHLI on Mars.The new MAHLI images show that the calibration target has a coating of Martian dust on it.

This view of the lower front and underbelly areas of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity was taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) during the 34th Martian day, or sol, of Curiosity's work on Mars on Sept. 9. Also visible are the hazard avoidance cameras on the front of the rover. MAHLI is located in the turret of tools at the end of Curiosity's robotic arm.

This view of the three left wheels of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity combines two images that were taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) during the 34th Martian day, or sol, of Curiosity's work on Mars on Sept. 9, 2012. In the distance is the lower slope of Mount Sharp.

An image released by NASA on Sept. 6 shows tracks from the first drives of NASA's Curiosity rover are visible in this image captured by the High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The rover is seen where the tracks end. The image's color has been enhanced to show the surface details better. The two marks seen near the site where the rover landed formed when reddish surface dust was blown away by the rover's descent stage, revealing darker basaltic sands underneath. Similarly, the tracks appear darker where the rover's wheels disturbed the top layer of dust. Observing the tracks over time will provide information on how the surface changes as dust is deposited and eroded.

The surroundings of the location where NASA Mars rover Curiosity arrived on Sept. 4. It is a mosaic of images taken by Curiosity's Navigation Camera (Navcam) following the Sol 29 drive of 100 feet. Tracks from the drive are visible in the image. For scale, Curiosity leaves parallel tracks about 9 feet apart.

This color view of the parachute and back shell that helped deliver NASA's Curiosity rover to the surface of the Red Planet was taken by the High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and released on Sept. 6. The area where the back shell impacted the surface is darker because lighter-colored material on the surface was kicked up and displaced.

After a rocket-powered descent stage, also known as the sky crane, delivered NASA's Curiosity rover to Mars on Aug. 5, it flew away and fell to the surface in this photo released on Sept. 6. Possible multiple impacts from that collision are revealed in blue in this enhanced-color view taken by the High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The main crash site is seen at right, shaped like a fan. Farther from the site are several smaller dark spots, which are thought to be secondary impacts from debris that continued to travel outward. The impact sites are darker because the lighter, reddish top layer of soil was disturbed, revealing darker basaltic sands underneath.

A high-resolution color image taken on Aug. 23 shows the base of Mt. Sharp, the rover's eventual destination. Scientists enhanced the color in one version to show the Martian scene under the lighting conditions of Earth, which helps in analyzing the terrain.

A high-resolution color image taken on Aug. 23 looks south-southwest from the rover's landing site. The gravelly area around Curiosity's landing site is visible in the foreground. Farther away, about a third of the way up from the bottom of the image, the terrain falls off into a depression (a swale). Beyond the swale, in the middle of the image, is the boulder-strewn, red-brown rim of a moderately sized impact crater. Farther off in the distance, there are dark dunes and then the layered rock at the base of Mt. Sharp. Some haze obscures the view, but the top ridge is 10 miles away.

NASA holds an educational experience as will.i.am, left, listens to his song "Reach for the Stars," along with Bobak Ferdowsi, right , flight director for Curiosity, as the song is played after being transmitted from the surface of Mars by the rover.

This image released by NASA shows tire tracks made by Curiosity during the rover's first test drive on Aug. 22. A little more than two weeks after its arrival on Mars, the $2.5-billion rover has performed a battery of tests and appears ready to begin exploring.

At the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge on Aug. 22, NASA scientists sit in front of a panoramic image of the Curiosity touch-down area called Bradbury Landing, named after writer Ray Bradbury. The image shows the first tracks of the six-wheeled rover on Mars, a test drive for a much longer trek expected later this year. Shown from left are scientists Michael Meyer, Peter Theisinger, Matt Heverly, Roger Wiens and Joy Crisp.

This image released by NASA on Aug. 19 shows the Mars rock chosen as the first target for the Curiosity rover to zap with its Chemistry and Camera laser instrument. ChemCam fired its laser at the fist-sized rock, called Coronation, for the purpose of analyzing the glowing, ionized gas, called plasma, that the laser excites.

This composite image with magnified insets provided by NASA/JPL-Caltech shows the first laser test conducted by the Curiosity rover's Chemistry and Camera instrument on Mars. The ChemCam fires a laser at a rock in order to identify the chemical elements of the plasma that subsequently comes off the rock.

This NASA image released Aug. 20 shows a panorama created by several images of Mars' Mount Sharp. The Martian mountain rises 3.4 miles above the floor of Gale Crater. Part of Curiosity's mission is to examine geological deposits near the base of Mount Sharp.

A full-resolution self-portrait of the deck of NASA's Curiosity rover from the rover's navigation cameras. The back of the rover can be seen at the top left of the image, and two of the rover's right-side wheels can be seen on the left. Part of the pointy rim of Gale Crater forms the lighter color strip in the background.

This image provided by NASA on Thursday shows the first 360-degree color panorama taken on Mars by NASA's Curiosity rover. The panorama was stitched together using thumbnail images taken by the rover's mast camera. Curiosity landed in Gale Crater on Mars on Sunday to begin a two-year mission.

This is the first image taken by the navigation cameras on NASA's Curiosity rover. It shows the shadow of the rover's now-upright mast in the center, and the arm's shadow at left. The arm itself can be seen in the foreground.

A close-up view shows the zones where the soil at Curiosity's landing site was blown away by the thrusters on the rover's descent stage on Mars. The removal of the soil reveals probable bedrock outcrop. This is important because it shows the shallow depth of the soil in this area. The area surrounding the zones where the soil was blown away shows abundant small rocks that may form a pavement-like layer above harder bedrock. This full-resolution image was taken by the rover's navigation camera.

The location where scientists estimate NASA's Curiosity rover landed on Mars within Gale Crater is shown in green. It is based on images from the Mars Descent Imager (MARDI). The landing estimates derived from navigation and landing data agree to within 660 feet (200 meters) of this MARDI estimate. The red line shows the northern edge of the targeted landing region. The gray scale image is a mosaic from the HiRISE camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The color image is from MARDI.

These are the first two full-resolution images of the Martian surface from the navigation cameras on NASA's Curiosity rover, which are mounted on the rover's "head," or mast. The craggy rim of Gale Crater can be seen in the distance beyond the pebbly ground. The ground in the middle distance shows low-relief scarps and plains. The foreground shows two distinct zones of excavation likely carved out by blasts from the rover's descent stage thrusters.

This panoramic view comprised of multiple images shows the first 360-degree view from NASA's Curiosity rover. Mount Sharp is to the right, and the north rim of Gale Crater can be seen at center. The rover's body is in the foreground, with the shadow of its head, or mast, poking up to the right.

Images compare the view through a hazard-avoidance camera on the Curiosity rover before, left, and after the clear dust cover was removed. Mount Sharp, the mission's ultimate destination, looms ahead. The view on the left, with the dust cover on, is one quarter of full resolution, while the view on the right is full resolution.

A color full-resolution image shows the heat shield of NASA's Curiosity rover obtained during descent to the surface of Mars on Aug. 5. The image was obtained by the Mars Descent Imager instrument known as MARDI and shows the 15-foot diameter heat shield when it was about 50 feet from the spacecraft.

This image released by NASA on Wednesday, taken by cameras aboard the Curiosity rover, shows the Martian horizon. It's one of dozens of images that will be made into a panorama. Curiosity landed on Sunday on a two-year mission to study whether its landing site ever could have supported microbial life.

An image realeased by NASA shows NASA's Curiosity rover. It was taken through a "fisheye" wide-angle lens on the left "eye" of a stereo pair of Hazard-Avoidance cameras on the left-rear side of the rover. The image is one-half of full resolution. The clear dust cover that protected the camera during landing has been sprung open. Part of the spring that released the dust cover can be seen at the bottom right, near the rover's wheel.

This Aug. 26, 2003, image made available by NASA shows Mars photographed by the Hubble Space Telescope on the Red Planet's closest approach to Earth in 60,000 years. NASA's robotic rover Curiosity landed safely on Mars late Sunday, beginning two years of exploration. The mission's cost: $2.5 billion.

With one of the first Mars images taken by the rover Curiosity projected behind them, John Grunsfeld, Charles Elachi, Pere Theisinger, Richard Cook, Adam Steltzner and John Grotzinger exult at a news conference at Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge.

Adam Steltzner, right, a leader of the landing team, said that if any one of 76 pyrotechnic explosions failed to occur before landing, "We die." Officials had spent much of the day Sunday speculating about how Curiosity might fail, and what the consequences might be for America's space program.

At JPL, Steve Collins endures the "seven minutes of terror": the time it took the Mars rover to perform its complex, automated landing sequence. Even if something went wrong, there would be no chance for manual intervention.

18 Comments

Being curious about curiosity, the article says, "…two and one-half minutes before touchdown", what's the elevation from the martian ground? Also, what's those symbol painted on the robot – plutonium? A way of warning the Martians? Lastly, the main mission is to verify life forms, why not land near suspected riverbeds, caves or extinct volcanic oceans instead of a crater? As on Earth, where not life begins where water is abundant?

There was a question about the symbols that look like radiation warning symbols. I believe those are registration markers so that the position of the various components can be determined more accurately from photographs. It’s a stylized cross-hair that is more readily visible than a true cross-hair would be.

This was a ground breaking mission. It’s evidence for the incredible things that are to come. The pictures are just icing on the cake. Besides, I have no doubt that there will be thousands of more pictures to come, even if, as a public we don’t see them. And with thise pictures we can analyze something that we could inly dream of before. If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.

This was a groundbreaking mission. It’s evidence for the incredible things that are to come. The pictures are just icing on the cake. With these pictures we can analyze something that in the past we could only dream about. With this mission we will not be only collecting “a single colored photo” but thousands of photos that can reconstruct the way we think of Mars.

So yes, “grate” job NASA! I can’t wait to see what is next in your program!